Name Awesome

Canaan

#1,044 in 2025UnisexBoys' nameGirls' name

Possibly to be low, humble, subjugated, through כְּנַעַן

Canaan has been given to 6,167 babies in the U.S. since 1973. In 2025 it ranked #1,044 of 13,926 boys’ names in use. Its peak year was 2016, with 385 recorded. It's used for both sexes: 95% boys, 5% girls all-time.

Babies named Canaan, 2025

1 in 15,600

Canaan over time, 1880–2025

BoysGirls
010020030040018801900192019401960198020002020

Based on births in the U.S. Babies given the name each year. Hover the chart — or focus it and use the arrow keys — for any year. Gaps mean the name was given fewer than 5 times that year; these counts are unpublished.

Girls or boys — Canaan over time

In 2025, Canaan went to 3% girls and 97% boys.

19732025

A sex is only published in years it reached five applications, so a stretch at 0% or 100% means the other side stayed under that floor — not that it was never used.

Canaan: meaning, origin, and history

Possibly to be low, humble, subjugated, through כְּנַעַן

Hebrew

What Canaan means

Canaan belongs to the name family reached through Canaan → כְּנַעַן. Its meaning is “to be low, humble, subjugated”.

Dictionary etymologyReferences, data & attribution

Taken (at least as early as Wycliffe's Bible, 1382-1395, which has Chanaan) from Ecclesiastical Latin Chanaān, from Ancient Greek Χαναάν (Khanaán), expanded from Χνᾶ (Khnâ), from Biblical Hebrew כְּנַעַן (kanáʕan). The first vowel shifted from /aː/ to /eɪ/ in the Great Vowel Shift; at least as early as Milton (1660s), the word could already be pronounced with two syllables, though at least as late as the 1880s it could also be pronounced with three, /ˈkeɪ.nə.æn/.

Excerpt from Wiktionary: Canaan (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0

Wiktionary material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Origin, language, and formation

Canaan is used in English. Its origins include Hebrew.

Canaan comes through Ecclesiastical Latin Chanaān, Ancient Greek Χαναάν and Biblical Hebrew כְּנַעַן.

Related names and everyday forms

Related names include כְּנַעַן.

Pronunciation and spelling

In English, Canaan is pronounced /ˈkeɪnən/.

American usage and historical context

In the United States, 5,843 boys were recorded with the name Canaan between 1973 and 2025. Its highest annual count was 385 in 2016; its best national rank was #671 in 2016.

Over 5 years its rank fell, from #950 in 2020 to #1,044 in 2025. Over 10 years its rank fell, from #806 in 2015 to #1,044 in 2025.

In the United States, 324 girls were recorded with the name Canaan between 1980 and 2025. Its highest annual count was 19 in 2010; its best national rank was #6,698 in 2010.

Over 10 years its rank fell, from #8,552 in 2015 to #13,516 in 2025.

How common is Canaan?

Everything below is computed from the 2025 data — the most recent year available.

Among all babies, 2025
1 in 15,600
212 of 3,315,165 births
Among boys only
1 in 8,060
0.01% of boys
Rank, 2025
#1,044
of 13,926 boys’ names in use
Coin-flip room size
10,840 kids
Even odds of a second one

Where Canaan sits on the popularity scale

Rarest published (5 a year)#1 — Liam (20,818)

Chance at least one other child shares the name

If the other children were drawn at random from the 2025 national name distribution. Real classrooms cluster by region and community, so treat these as a floor, not a ceiling.

Class of 20Under 1%
Class of 30Under 1%
Grade of 100Under 1%
School of 5003%

Put another way: gather 10,840 children born in 2025 and it's an even bet that one of them is another Canaan. In a class of 30 the chance is Under 1%.

When Canaans were born

Half of everyone ever recorded as Canaan was born before 2014 — so the typical Canaan is around 11 today.

Median birth year
2014
About 11 years old
Biggest decade
2010s
40.2% of all use
Born in the last 25 years
82.4%
A modern name
Recorded since 1950
5,843
People you could plausibly meet
Choose a decade

2010s — 40.2% of all recorded uses (2,346).

Is Canaan rising or falling?

Rank movement and count movement can disagree — the number of distinct names in use keeps growing, so a name holding a steady count still slides down the list. Both are shown.

Rank vs 1 year ago
+38
Places climbed
Rank vs 5 years ago
−94
Places dropped
Rank vs 10 years ago
−238
Places dropped
Births vs 10 years ago
0.74×
Fewer babies than then
Share of its own peak
55.1%
Peak was 2016 (385)
Years since peak
9
Years
Year-to-year steadiness
Shifting
14.2% average annual change
Best rank ever
#671
2016

Spellings of Canaan

Canaan is not the most common spelling — Callan is, with 16.7% against Canaan's 8.8%.

Grouped by closeness of spelling (up to two letter changes), same sex, with a floor on all-time use. It catches Sophia/Sofia and Aiden/Ayden, and misses spellings that sound alike but look different, like Sean and Shawn.

Where Canaan is used — boys

Across 2016–2025, Canaan was most concentrated in Kentucky — about 1 in 2,083 boys, against 1 in 6,580 across all states with data. It was least common in Minnesota (1 in 50,000).

248 per 100,000

Most concentrated

  1. 1Kentucky1 in 2,083
  2. 2Tennessee1 in 2,128
  3. 3Alabama1 in 2,273
  4. 4Arkansas1 in 2,632
  5. 5Louisiana1 in 2,778
  6. 6Mississippi1 in 2,857
  7. 7North Carolina1 in 2,857
  8. 8South Carolina1 in 3,030

Shading is the share of that state's recorded boys given this name, not the raw count — otherwise the map would just show which states are biggest. Unshaded states have no published records for this period. U.S. birth records suppress state-year counts below 5; state counts therefore don't add up to the national total. Every state links to its full rankings.

Geographically, Canaan is one of the more regionally concentrated names in the country — more concentrated than 87% of the names used widely enough to compare. See the most regional names

Where Canaan is used — girls

Across 1910–2025, Canaan was most concentrated in Texas — about 1 in — girls, against 1 in 2,456,184 across all states with data.

00 per 100,000

Most concentrated

  1. 1Texas1 in —

Shading is the share of that state's recorded girls given this name, not the raw count — otherwise the map would just show which states are biggest. Unshaded states have no published records for this period. U.S. birth records suppress state-year counts below 5; state counts therefore don't add up to the national total. Every state links to its full rankings. Canaan has too little recent state data to map, so this covers all years from 1910.

Canaan around the world

Where Canaan ranks in official birth records elsewhere in the world. Rankings only — the number of births isn’t comparable between places, so it isn’t shown.

  • England & Wales
    1996–2023
    #2,814
    in 2023
  • Canada
    2007–2024
    #2,550
    in 2024

Popularity data from Office for National Statistics and Statistics Canada. ONS data under Open Government Licence v3.0. StatCan data under Statistics Canada Open Licence.

Notable people named Canaan

People whose public names include Canaan, backed by Wikidata given-name records and ordered by linked Wikimedia pages. The name may be a middle name.

People data from Wikidata (CC0). Fame is measured, not judged — the order reflects how widely each person is documented, not the U.S. birth records popularity this page is otherwise about.

Canaan by the numbers

The raw record for each sex the name is used for.

As a boy's name

Rank in 2025
#1,044
Trend vs 5 yrs ago
Down 94
Best rank ever
#671
2016
Peak year
2016
385 that year
First recorded
1973
Last recorded
2025
All-time count
5,843
Count in 2025
212

As a girl's name

Rank in 2025
#13,516
Trend vs 5 yrs ago
New entry
Best rank ever
#6,698
2010
Peak year
2010
19 that year
First recorded
1980
Last recorded
2025
All-time count
324
Count in 2025
6

Names similar to Canaan

Matched on shared beginnings and endings, similar length, and comparable popularity.

CanyonCannonVihaanIshaanCanonCandidoArmaanVivaanAvyaanCantonAyaanKiaanKanaanShaanEshaanRayaanYuvaanCannanRiaanViaanIvaanRihaanCaneloRishaan

Names with a curve like Canaan

Not spelling — timing. These names rose, peaked and faded in the same years as Canaan, so they read as being from the same moment even when they look nothing alike.

KyeAmeerYousefMerrickLangstonJerichoKyreeJadKaineDamariGreyThatcher

Sibling names for Canaan

Names from the same era and popularity tier — the two things that make a sibling set feel deliberate — skipping lookalike spellings and shared initials.

Explore around Canaan

Top names of 2016, Canaan's peak yearThe 2010s in fullOther names that peaked in 2016Boys' names starting with C